The Smart Studios Story(2016)

Christmas with Crosby & Kate(en)

The holidays just wouldn't be the holidays without Mr. White Christmas himself - Bing Crosby. His seemingly effortless, easygoing singing style and good humor made him an audience favorite for generations. In this rare episode of the Hollywood Palace, first telecast in 1966, der Bingle is joined by dancer Cyd Charisse, comedian Bob Newhart, the Crosby family, and Kate "God Bless America" Smith. Bing lends his smooth style to such favorites as the Christmas Waltz, Silver Bells, The twelve days of Christmas, Do you hear what I hear, and of course, White Christmas. Kate Smith belts out Christmas Eve in my home town and there's a special Crosby-Kate medley of catchy Christmas carols.

Flow(en)

Death Angel - Sonic German Beatdown - Live in Germany(en)

Five years after the acclaimed comeback album "The Art Of Dying", and the following album “Killing Season”, the legendary and one of the most influential bands of the Bay Area Thrash Metal scene DEATH ANGEL will release a DVD with two full length concerts filmed in Germany. The DVD was filmed live at Rockhard Festival 2007 and in Adelsheim.in 2008. It contains some of the new Songs, two Clips and a lot of old DEATH ANGEL stuff which is still seriously cult! This is the first live DVD ever in the history of DEATH ANGEL and it also contains a Live CD. So, what to say more: Grab "Sonic German Beatdown" and see by yourself that DEATH ANGEL are more alive than ever before! It's just amazing…

Barbie(en)

Barbie comes home from shopping. She takes her groceries out of the bag and unwraps a little Barbie doll. She fries up the Barbie doll and eats it.

Kairos Dirt and the Errant Vacuum(en)

A series of collective dreams of a transworldly being visits a myriad of characters, revealing their subconscious desires.

Forsworn(en)

A sapphic royal/guard romance. Princess Ellora has some reservations about inheriting the throne. Her reservations are often quelled by her guard, Brynn, who promises to support her through even the toughest times. After Ellora's betrothal becomes imminent, the girls must decide if their feelings for one another are to be acted upon before it's too late, or extinguished.

Pain(en)

Dad catches a ball badly, injuring his finger. His guttural scream instantly hushes the entire sports complex. Sarah is paralysed. She barely recognises him; red faced, clutching his hand and crying. In the sanctuary of the locker changing rooms, Sarah explores and tests theories about what has happened with her Dad. She questions who her father is while struggling to grasp the concept of pain, both inside and out. Having found an apparent conclusion, Sarah returns to an apologetic Dad, and decides to put his promises to the test.music:Annette Focksproducer:Tobias Rosen, Heike Wiehle-Timmproduction:Relevant Film, Warner Bros Entertainment Germanybacking:Deutscher Filmförderfonds (DFFF) (DE), Schleswig-Holstein Film Commission (DE), Filmförderungsanstalt (FFA)(DE)distributor:Warner Bros Entertainment Germany

I Remember Crimson Peak(en)

Four segments that breakdown the filmmaking process of Crimson Peak.

Symptoms(es)

A 17-year-old girl faces a life with an adverse perspective, where her social life, her experiences, her happiness and emotional stability only depend on a thread that is too damaged.

Blood & Orchids(en)

Hester Murdoch is found naked and nearly beaten to death by four young Hawaiian men on the beach and taken to the hospital. Some of the men didn't want to get involved, fearing they might be blamed, because she was white, but do so anyway. Almost immediately everyone suspects they are to blame. When Hester's politically influential mother Doris finds out what really happened, she fearing a scandal, forces her daughter to blame the men who rescued her, of raping and beating her. It's up to detective Curt Maddox, to find out what really happened, and their Hawaiian lawyer to do the impossible. Convince a white court of law, that they are innocent.

Christmas in Alaska(en)

Rival journalists competing for the same lucrative promotion get stuck together in snowy Alaska after their plane is forced to make an emergency landing. They find themselves caught up in a totally unexpected Christmas romance.

Vera F. Birkenbihl - Was wir unbedingt über die Islamische Welt wissen müssen(de)

Gay ?(fr)

"I'm gay, I'm a fag, I'm proud and I really love sex."

Dream Girl(en)

A young woman spends much of her time fantasizing about what might be, but a realistic admirer tries to convince her to live the life she has.

My Blind Heart(de)

Kurt, who suffers from an incurable disease, gets obsessed with the idea of freeing himself from his sick body - at any price.

Lola la taquera(es)

School for Girls(en)

After being convicted of stealing some jewels, Annette Eldrige is sent to a reformatory administered by a sadistic and corrupt female warder. However, one of the board of trustees takes an interest in the new arrival and begins to investigate the management of the institution.

White Riot(en)

Exploring how punk influenced politics in late-1970s Britain, when a group of artists united to take on the National Front, armed only with a fanzine and a love of music.

Somebody Up There Likes Me(en)

Mike Figgis’ enthralling documentary about the turbulent life and career of Ronnie Wood, legendary rock guitarist and long-time member of The Rolling Stones.

Mermaids(en)

In this tribute to the eternal allure of an ancient myth, colourful fins and swimming pools fill the lives of five modern-day women who strive to embody the mysterious siren as part of a growing “mermaiding” subculture.

Joseph Cornell: Worlds in a Box(en)

This is a 1991 documentary film about the legendary artist and filmmaker, Joseph Cornell, who made those magnificent and strange collage boxes. He was also one of our great experimental filmmakers and once apparently made Salvador Dali extremely jealous at a screening of his masterpiece, Rose Hobart. In this film we get to hear people like Susan Sontag, Stan Brakhage, and Tony Curtis talk about their friendships with the artist. It turns out that Curtis was quite a collector and he seemed to have a very deep understanding of what Cornell was doing in his work.

The Road Forward(en)

The Road Forward is an electrifying musical documentary that connects a pivotal moment in Canada’s civil rights history—the beginnings of Indian Nationalism in the 1930s—with the powerful momentum of First Nations activism today. Interviews and musical sequences describe how a tiny movement, the Native Brotherhood and Sisterhood, grew to become a successful voice for change across the country. Visually stunning, The Road Forward seamlessly connects past and present through superbly produced story-songs with soaring vocals, blues, rock, and traditional beats.

A World Without Beethoven?(en)

"What would the world be like without Beethoven?" That’s the provocative question posed by this music documentary from Deutsche Welle. To answer it, the film explores how Ludwig van Beethoven's innovations continue to have an impact far beyond the boundaries of classical music, 250 years after his birth.

Woodstock(en)

An intimate look at the Woodstock Music & Art Festival held in Bethel, NY in 1969, from preparation through cleanup, with historic access to insiders, blistering concert footage, and portraits of the concertgoers; negative and positive aspects are shown, from drug use by performers to naked fans sliding in the mud, from the collapse of the fences by the unexpected hordes to the surreal arrival of National Guard helicopters with food and medical assistance for the impromptu city of 500,000.

The Queen Phenomenon(en)

Retrospective documentary about the British rock band "Queen", from the 1970s till the death of Freddie Mercury, victim of AIDS. Includes interviews with the band members, friends and fans, behind the scenes material, the making of music videos, concerts and lots of music.

Anna Piaggi: Fashion Visionary(it)

The world of fashion, between the end of the Sixties and the beginning of the Noughties, had a key character that embodied its spirit and told the tale: journalist Anna Piaggi, living witness of that contamination between art, society and culture that changed fashion and sanctioned its success on a global scale. The daughter of a manager for La Rinascente (Milan's iconic high-end shopping mall whose foundation goes back to 1865), Karl Lagerfeld's muse, "a poet with her clothes" in the words of Bill Cunningham, her life is retraced through interviews with designers (Jean-Charles de Castelbajac, Stephen Jones, Manolo Blahnik, and more) together with archival images from four decades of fashion history.

Ted Williams(en)

Born in 1918 in San Diego, Williams was a latchkey child from a broken home, raised by a mother more dedicated to the Salvation Army than to her two sons, and by a father who spent more time away from home than in it. Williams found salvation by doing the one thing he loved most: hitting baseballs. In his rookie season with the Red Sox, where he would spend his entire career as a player, Williams batted .327, socked 31 homers and led the league with 145 RBI. Over the next 21 years, despite losing five seasons of his prime to active service as a U.S. Marine Corps pilot, Williams hit 521 home runs, twice captured the Triple Crown, and became the oldest man ever to win a batting title. He finished his career with a .344 lifetime batting average, was the last man to hit over .400 in a full season, batting .406 in 1941, and was a first-ballot inductee into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

If You're Not in the Obit, Eat Breakfast(en)

Irrepressible writer-comedian Carl Reiner, who shows no signs of slowing down at 94, tracks down celebrated nonagenarians, and a few others over 100, to show how the twilight years can truly be the happiest and most rewarding. Among those who share their insights into what it takes to be vital and productive in older age are Mel Brooks, Dick Van Dyke, Kirk Douglas, Norman Lear, Betty White and Tony Bennett.

Five Came Back(en)

The extraordinary story of how Hollywood changed World War II – and how World War II changed Hollywood, through the interwoven experiences of five legendary filmmakers who went to war to serve their country and bring the truth to the American people: John Ford, William Wyler, John Huston, Frank Capra, and George Stevens. Based on Mark Harris’ best-selling book, “Five Came Back: A Story of Hollywood and the Second World War.”

Grêmio - Heart and Soul(pt)

A documentary that tells the history of Grêmio Football Porto-Alegrense from its foundation in 1903 to the triumph of the 1997 Copa do Brasil. In addition to providing the historical panorama of the achievements of the club, the documentary explores the relationship between club and supporter through testimonies of players, coaching staff, former presidents and fans.

Frank Sinatra Memorial(en)

Frank Sinatra, the greatest entertainer of the 20th century, is remembered by some of the brightest stars in Hollywood in this television memorial which celebrates his life and mourns his passing. Exclusive flashback interviews with Sinatra, his friends and his family, reveal little known facts about his overwhelming generosity and the sensationalized image created by the press. * In-depth interviews with those who knew him best... Ed McMahon, Tommy Sands, Shecky Green, Phyllis McGuire, Quincy Jones, & Betty Garrett, among others. * See highlights from some of Sinatra’s last films and farewell perfomances.

Big Giant Wave(en)

Big Giant Wave is an ode to music, the invisible abstract and fleeting sequence of sounds that creates in the brain the same reaction as chocolate, sex, or drugs.

Jews(en)

JEWS excavates a lost world of manners and ritual in home movies shot by several Chicago families from the 1920s through the 1940s. Much as in similar found footage soliloquies by Péter Forgács, Jay Rosenblatt and Ken Jacobs, director Roger Deutsch wrings unexpected pathos from mundane traces of the past. Children mug for the camera with dances of the day, upright mothers march their strollers up the avenue, men smoke, the family gathers around the table to light the candles. The bare title cannot help but raise the specter of contemporaneous events in Europe, lending an extra degree of urgency to the film's meditation on disappearance. - Max Goldberg

44 Pages(en)

A portrait of Highlights Magazine following the creation of the cultural phenomenon's 70th Anniversary issue, from the first editorial meeting to its arrival in homes, and introducing the quirky people who passionately produce the monthly publication for "the world's most important people,"...children. Along the way, a rich and tragic history is revealed, the state of childhood, technology, and education is explored, and the future of print media is questioned.

This Is Canoas Not POA(pt)

Canoas is considered by many, especially by those who are not from there, as a commuter town. Cities from metropolitan areas are usually labeled like this because of the workforce that commutes out everyday to work in the capital. In this daily movement, many times, ideas are conceived and creativity flourishes. I believe that this is one of the reasons why those cities often have a lively cultural scene. The documentary "This is Canoas not POA" makes this very clear: Canoas has a lot to show in terms of a music scene that's independent, diverse, creative, and most important, united. Bands, night clubs, studios, producers, record shops. Everything a music scene needs to develop is very well documented here. Watch it and create your own scene, start your own band!

Shine a Light(en)

Martin Scorsese and the Rolling Stones unite in "Shine A Light," a look at The Rolling Stones." Scorsese filmed the Stones over a two-day period at the intimate Beacon Theater in New York City in fall 2006. Cinematographers capture the raw energy of the legendary band.

Clínica de Migrantes: Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness(en)

Puentes de Salud is a volunteer-run clinic that provides free medical care to undocumented immigrants in south Philadelphia. Here, doctors and nurses work for free to serve people who would otherwise fall through the cracks. Clinica de Migrantes, a potent film by Maxim Pozdorovkin, follows the workers and patients of Puentes through months of routine care and growth. Along the way, the film puts a face to the millions of people who exist on the margins of society: people displaced from their homelands, separated from their families, unfamiliar with the customs, unable to obtain health insurance and terrified to come forward to seek medical help. Along with revealing these patient stories, Clinica is also a look at the heroic doctors and nurses who work pro bono to ensure these people receive care, offering a deeply moving look at the limitless potential of humanity.